1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to fishing rods and, more particularly, to structure associated with the rod to enhance user sensitivity to vibration thereof.
2. Background Art
Designers of fishing rods strive to optimize the sensitivity of the rod to vibrations imparted through an associated fishing line. It is desirable to sense even very slight nibbling by fish on a bait so that the fisherman can react timely and appropriately.
One attempt to enhance the sensitivity of a rod is demonstrated in U.S. Pat. No. 4,463,512, to McCreery. In McCreery, an elongate notch is provided in the rod handle and seats the rod blank in operative position. The rod blank is captured in the notch between a mounting foot on the reel and the rod handle. One drawback with the McCreery structure is that the rod blank is firmly held against the handle along a substantial length thereof so that vibrations imparted to the rod are substantially damped.
Other variations of structure using the principal in McCreery are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,398,369, to Wiebe, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,516,351, to Highby. In each of the structures in the latter two patents, the same problem with vibration damping is contended with. The end result is that the sensitivity to the rod flexing and vibration is not appreciably improved over rods wherein the rod blank does not extend into the handle.